


Strawberries and cigarettes

by southernpumpkin



Series: Simple serendipity [1]
Category: JBJ (Band), Produce 101 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Barista Kenta, Fluff and Angst, M/M, college student donghan, who also dances sometimes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-18
Updated: 2018-11-18
Packaged: 2019-08-25 12:50:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16661425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/southernpumpkin/pseuds/southernpumpkin
Summary: Long nights, daydreams; sugar and smoke rings always taste like you.Donghan falls in love with all the different sides of Kenta he sees.





	Strawberries and cigarettes

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the song Strawberries and Cigarettes by Troye Sivan. Something like a coming-of-age love story.

“Why don’t you...just like, ask for his number or something?" Hyunbin asked after listening to Donghan talk about the ‘cute barista at the cafe near his dance studio’ for the dozenth time.  
“At his work?”  
“Yeah,” Hyunbin shrugged.  
“...I don’t want him to think I’m a creep,” Donghan explained.  
“What, aren’t you?” Sanggyun chimed in.  
Donghan cussed at him so loudly that the patrons at the next table turned to look in their direction. He bowed his head and apologized.

“So, want to watch football with us tonight?” Taehyun switched the topic. “We’re going to a sports bar.”

“Oh, I’m going clubbing with some friends actually,” Donghan gave an apologetic smile, but he couldn’t hide the excitement in his eyes. He just turned of age recently after all and this would be his very first time going to a nightclub.

“Hongdae,” Sanggyun said knowingly, raising his eyebrows.  
“Yeah. Hongdae.”

“If things go down, remember to use protection,” Sanggyun grinned. Taehyun slapped him on the head out of reflex, before agreeing with his point.

 

It was already 2am when Donghan and his friends got to the club. The party was already in full blast and the dance floor was packed. The music was incredibly loud, the lights were disorientating and it wasn’t long before Donghan soon lost all his friends in the crowd.

Just as he was wondering what to do next, a shorter boy bumped into Donghan from the side, having been shoved around by the moving crowd. Though, instead of apologising or just moving on, the boy lifted his head up to look at Donghan and grinned. _Oh. He is really pretty_ . Donghan felt starstruck for a moment. _Wait, he looked really familiar though - wait, it can’t be…_ isn’t this the cute barista he has been gushing about?

Yeah, it was him no doubt - the same fluffy bleached hair, multiple earrings, and that smile which showed off his snaggletooth. Except he was no longer in his uniform  –  the white shirt and cream-coloured apron. This time, he was dressed to kill, with a choker, an oversized distressed tee, and some really tight pants on. He was also wearing make-up. The glitters around his eyes reflected the colored light, making him look almost unreal. He looked ethereal – as if this was a fragment of Donghan’s drunken fantasy, except that Donghan was too broke to buy enough drinks to even get tipsy.

 

From the movement of his lips, the boy had said something, but Donghan couldn’t hear him over the blaring music. He beckoned Donghan closer, and then tiptoed to whisper in his ear.

“Are you here alone?”

The warmth of his breath tickled Donghan’s ear, and Donghan felt heat gushing up his cheeks. If it wasn’t for the lighting, it would’ve been obvious that his ears that turned beet red in the moment. He nodded vigorously in response to the question. The boy giggled at his eagerness.

“I’m Kenta. Ken-ta”, he said in Donghan’s ear, introducing himself. So he was Japanese after all, Donghan thought. His name sounded as pretty as he looked.

“I’m Donghan,” Donghan said loudly, trying to beat the noise, “19 years old. How old are you?”  
Kenta smiled, and held up his fingers in double Vs to answer.

“You’re a hyung,” Donghan said, blinking in awe. Kenta was so small, so cute. He looked young. “Can I call you Kenta-hyung?”  
Kenta touched Donghan’s wrist and nudged for him to lean down slightly. Donghan obliged naturally, and Kenta leaned forward to speak in his ear once again. “You don’t have to,” he said softly, before pulling back and flickering his eyes between Donghan eyes and lips.

It was an obvious sign and Donghan allowed the kiss to happen.

Kenta tasted like cigarettes and candy.

 

They ended up at Kenta’s place - a small room on top of a family restaurant. It was messy and cramped, and Kenta had to shove a pile of clothes off the bed before he could climb on it. Donghan paid no mind because Kenta was all he could see. He leaned down to kiss him, tugging on his choker a bit as he deepened the kiss.

 

Kenta bit on the blanket as Donghan entered him. Donghan wanted to hear Kenta’s voice so he reached to remove the blanket, but Kenta slapped his hand away.

“Just fuck me good instead of worrying about useless things,” Kenta said, smirking.

That was all Donghan needed.

 

After sex, Kenta propped himself up against the bedframe and reached for his pack of cigarettes and a lighter. He lit a cigarette and breathed out slowly after taking a drag, staring blankly at the curtains. Donghan, who had been quietly watching him, reached over to put his arms around him and Kenta allowed him to do so. He also let Donghan pull him back under the sheets, resting his head in the crook of Donghan’s arm as the younger boy gently pat him to a slow rhythm. When he turned to look at Donghan, their eyes met and Donghan smiled at him. Donghan was handsome and suave, he certainly was, but there was also a certain innocent softness to him. Kenta wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. He put out his cigarette on the ashtray by the bed stand and scooted closer to Donghan, finally settling his head on Donghan’s chest before drifting off to sleep.

 

_Next day nothing on my phone, but I can still smell you on my clothes._

 

On the next morning, Kenta let Donghan have breakfast at his place before sending him off. It was cereal with strawberry milk. Kenta looked different in the morning without the glittery makeup and with his hair wet from the shower. He looked older, charming in a different way.

When Donghan asked for his number, he hesitated a bit before punching it in. Donghan thought nothing of it back then, but after a week of no replies from Kenta, he felt that something wasn’t quite right.

 

"So you slept with him first and then asked for his number and a date after?" Taehyun asked.  
Donghan nodded. His coffee tasted more bitter than usual today.  
"You've kinda got the order wrong," Taehyun said, frowning. "When people hook up like that, they probably don't expect to get a relationship out of it. He probably just thinks of you as a one night stand, which is why he's avoiding you now."

“It’s a misunderstanding. I have to clear it up,” Donghan bit his lower lip.

 

It was difficult. His texts and calls still got ignored, and even when he went to the cafe, Kenta would greet him with an expressionless face and refused to talk.

 

Saturday night. His phone screen lit up with an incoming text. It was from Kenta.

“You’re an adult, cut it out.”  
The first text he ever received from Kenta.

  
If this was what being an adult meant, perhaps he wasn't ready for it after all, Donghan thought.

  
Before he knew what he was doing, he was at Kenta’s place, knocking on his door and calling his name out of desperation.

 

The door of the room next to Kenta’s opened, revealing an annoyed looking young man with messy hair.

“Look, if you keep doing that, I will have to call the police and it’s going to be a pain for both of us,” he said in a deadpan voice. “I don't know what Kenta did, but does it really warrant this kind of behavior on your part?”  
Perhaps it was the alcohol, or perhaps he was just very tired of it all.  An overwhelming sadness engulfed Donghan and he felt himself tearing up.  
Kenta’s neighbour was certainly caught off guard.

“Look….I was just scaring you, I wouldn’t actually call the police,” he mumbled under his breath, shuffling out of his room. As Donghan started breaking down and crying out loud, he started patting Donghan on the back awkwardly. He squatted down next to Donghan awkwardly watching as the 19-year old sat on the floor and cried his heart out.

  
Ten minutes in, someone could be heard coming up the stairs.

"Donghan." Donghan was slightly shocked he heard a voice – Kenta’s voice – calling his name. Was this the first time Kenta called him by his name?  
Donghan lifted up his head which was previously buried in his hands. Truly enough, it was Kenta. Donghan opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.  
Kenta didn't look happy.    
"It's late, I'm very tired, and I still have the morning shift tomorrow," Kenta sighed. "Besides, you're in no condition to talk right now. I suggest you go back for today and we talk another time. My off day is on Wednesday, we can meet then."  
Donghan nodded numbly and left Kenta’s place.

  
Dongahan felt lost. Walking through the empty streets at night, it was the first time he felt so alone in Seoul. He would be returning to an empty room. Even his roomate Hyunbin was away for the week.

 

_Long nights, daydreams, sugar and smoke rings; I’ve been a fool._

 

That night, and the nights after, he couldn’t sleep. He would lay down on his bed and stare at the ceiling until birds started chirping and the first rays of dawn shone into the room. He would then try to go about his day, and fall asleep randomly in between. On the bus, in class, even at the dance studio when his friends were dancing.

 

It felt like forever, but finally it was Tuesday night. Donghan only fell asleep when it was morning, and was woken up by his alarm clock shortly after. He quickly got out of bed – he got to see Kenta today. Looking into the mirror, he forced a smile on his face and tried to not look like he had missed a week’s worth of sleep.

 

Walking into the cafe where they agreed to meet at, Donghan spotted Kenta sitting at a table by the corner. Kenta was well-dressed as always. He was in an olive button up shirt that hung from his frame loosely, sleeves rolled up to reveal bracelets around his delicate wrists. His eyes were hidden behind tinted glasses. Donghan shifted uncomfortably, feeling under-dressed in his plain white tee and jeans. Perhaps he should’ve worn his denim jacket. The branded bucket hat Hyunbin gave him for his birthday. Those earrings that he only wore during dance performances.

 

It was an important day after all.

 

“So, you want to date me?”

Once they both got their drinks, Kenta dived straight into the topic. He was frowning when he asked the question.

Donghan has probably never felt so nervous, so scrutinized, in his life.

“Yes,” he replied regardless, “I like you. Very much.”  
Kenta’s expression visibly softened.

“Well, to tell the truth, I recognised you at the club,” Kenta said, “I remember your face from the cafe.”  
Donghan didn’t expect that at all.

“I normally don’t approach people that know me from work,” Kenta paused, “much less bring them home. And make them breakfast.” Another pause. “I suppose you were an exception. I thought I couldn’t let the chance pass.” Kenta looked down at his drink, stirring it absentmindedly.  
Donghan’s heart skipped a beat. Feeling fearful but also having a small ray of hope, he looked at Kenta, waiting for him to go on.

“I guess you’re really my type,” Kenta concluded with a shrug, effectively ending the topic and trying to look carefree. “But it doesn’t change that we barely know each other.”

“We can change that,” Donghan said immediately, eyes somewhat pleading. “I want to know more about you. What music you listen to, whether you are a cat person or dog person, what your dreams are, what ice cream flavour you like, all of that and more.”

“Strawberry.”

Donghan blinked.

“I like strawberry flavoured snacks.”  
Ah. That explained the strawberry milk with cereal. Donghan heart bursted with the small victory, and he made a mental note. Kenta likes strawberry.

 

“If it’s dating, I want something serious. Long term. No playing, no games. Is that what you’re looking for too?” An hour in, Kenta asked, hands folded on the table.

Donghan said yes, _yes yes yes yes_ , and Kenta looked like he’s going to accept it, but in the end he insisted that Donghan should think it over for a week.

Donghan agreed, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t going to see Kenta for a week.

 

It was kind of lame of him to, but he still went to the cafe to see Kenta everyday.

Kenta was more friendly now. It made Donghan’s heart beat faster to see him smile again ( _at him_ ).

 

Kenta didn’t make him wait for a whole week after all.

On the fifth day, Kenta asked to take Donghan out to dinner after his shift ended. Donghan waited by the back door of the cafe, and was soon greeted by Kenta who had changed out of his uniform. Kenta was wearing a simple t-shirt today, and when he reached to toss his hair back, Donghan was reminded of the Kenta he saw the morning they had breakfast together.

Except he was warmer, closer now.

The yellow street lights illuminated Kenta with a warm glow. He smiled upon seeing Donghan, crinkling his eyes. Then he tiptoed and kissed Donghan on the lips.

It took all of Donghan’s might to not lift Kenta up for another kiss that moment.

 

_You always leave me wanting more, I can’t shake my hunger for-_

 

Two years have passed and they're at a household goods store, shopping for the new apartment they just moved into. Donghan sees a strawberry shaped ashtray, glances at Kenta who is still wrecking his head over which pillowcase set to get, and ends up putting the ashtray into their shopping basket.

 

_-strawberries and cigarettes, they always taste like you._

**Author's Note:**

> The donghan/kenta prequel to the hyunbin/yongguk fanfic I posted a few months back. That one takes place two years later where donghan/kenta is already in an established relationship.  
> This song really reminds me of these two so I wrote this! I hope you enjoyed it and please leave a comment they mean alot to me <3


End file.
